Our folks have constantly urged us to get a decent amount of sleep. Countless times we’ve heard how not getting enough sleep could make us sick. Such lecturing aside, have you wondered how much truth there is to these statements? Or the meaning behind the phrase “beauty sleep”? If yes, we are here to provide context.
To find out how good sleep can be the basis of your beauty and health, we need to explore the term “good sleep” first. This refers to the duration of uninterrupted sleep. It is also a comparison tool for irregular sleep and its side effects. Read on to learn more about these things!
What Is Good Sleep?
To grade your rest as good sleep, evaluate it regarding these requirements:
- Being able to fall asleep quickly.
- Not waking up entirely during the night.
- Sleeping for at least seven hours. (Note that this does not include the time it takes you to fall asleep. So, if we were to consider that, the period for good sleep could go up to 8 hours.)
- Feeling refreshed after waking up.
If you checked all these boxes, you could safely declare it a good-quality sleep. However, if you wake up during the night or can’t quickly fall asleep, it may be a cause for a closer look.
Can Lack of Sleep Cause Accidents?
When you’re lacking sleep, you just don’t feel like yourself, right? You’re not thinking correctly; you’re not even thinking clearly, for that matter. Your judgment is impaired, and your body itself is pretty impaired, too. Sleep deprivation reduces alertness and vigilance, making it more difficult to stay focused on the road and react quickly to hazards. So, with that said, if you’re driving with a lack of sleep, good luck telling your accident attorney that you’re not the one who’s at fault.
A Study Showcasing Good Sleep’s Relation To Beauty And Health
The casual link between beauty and health is often obvious. For example, we find a healthy person more attractive than otherwise. For this, an experiment was conducted in Sweden. It focused on the relationship between adequate sleep, health, and beauty.
Twenty-three healthy participants took part in the study. The researchers started by taking pictures of them right after a good sleep. However, participants had to suffer some sleep deprivation for the following sessions. After waking them up too early, another photoshoot took place. Next, the researchers asked sixty-five observers to inspect the images. Precisely, they needed to point out the most attractive individuals.
The researchers did not inform the observers of the sleep status of the participants. Hence, they were not affected by such parameters. Still, most found the well-rested people to be more attractive. This study was the first scientific proof detailing the relationship between sleep and beauty. You can see the actual paper for yourself in the BMJ. Please note that this study only covers short-term sleep deprivation and its effect on overall appearance. Yet, such an outcome is enough to deduce that the effects of long-term sleep deprivation would be even worse.
Effects Of Not Getting Enough Good Sleep On Your Health And Beauty
In 2017, researchers published a paper about how factors like health and beauty affect a person’s perceived age. Sleep was among these criteria. In conclusion, the study found numerous detrimental effects of sleep deprivation on the skin, physical appearance, and overall health.
Sleep influences our everyday productivity in a major way. It also helps you recover from the previous day’s fatigue. In short, sleep is the getaway for our bodies, the state when weary muscles receive patching and all our worries turn silent. It’s what prepares us to face the following day’s challenges. Thus, if we keep on not getting enough sleep, we put a lot of things on the line. The long-term adverse effects include dampened immune system and even a decreased life span.
Sleep deprivation can also increase the risk of injuries since it leaves you with a slower reaction time. It impairs our cognitive abilities, too. We can not perform well at work while longing for the evening and finally getting some rest. Also, you are more likely to get chronically sick when suffering from insomnia. In practice, this means higher medical costs.
Lack of sleep can make your skin age faster by developing fine lines and wrinkles. It also affects how your skin barrier recovers from daily UV exposure.
The most common symptoms of sleep deprivation are:
- Always looking tired
- Hanging eyelids
- Red and swollen eyes
- Dark circles
- Pale skin
- Drooped corners of the mouth
- Increased fine lines and wrinkles
So, you can see why beauty sleep is crucial for your looks. After all, you wouldn’t find a person with these features attractive; instead, you would assume that they were sick. Your self-esteem will also take a hit from a lack of sleep since you might find yourself avoiding a mirror.
Trouble Getting Enough Sleep
Today, having to fall asleep on time seems like a hassle on its own. More than 70 million Americans have sleep issues. Classic methods like counting sheep, etc., simply aren’t enough. Hence, quite a few online stores offer various sleep-inducers. Plus, some domains are entirely dedicated to your eight hours of sleep.
One such website is Sleeping Ocean. It features guides that can help you find sleep no matter where. Visitors can access helpful articles and tips and tricks to resolve known issues. Take the problem when sleeping away from your home, for example. Falling asleep on a bed in a new environment is usually tricky. Luckily, by consulting this article, one might just figure it out in time.
There are many things you can do to make your surroundings more welcoming. Once feeling comfy, sleep is much easier to come. Here are some tricks:
- Create a proper sleep schedule and stick to it.
- Turn off the lights. By doing so, you’ll increase the production of Melatonin (a sleep hormone).
- Try to avoid taking too many naps during the day.
- Get enough food before the evening. However, don’t eat prior to going to bed.
- Use a satin pillow. Not only does it support your neck, but it’s also better for your skin and hair. Click here to find out how.
Conclusion
To sum it all up, if you want to stay healthy, you better get a good night’s sleep. It’s a habit all healthy people develop. Plus, it’s a part of your physical attractiveness and productivity. In short, being well-rested is beneficial in all social scenarios.
Iskra Banović is our seasoned Editor-in-Chief at Blufashion. She has been steering the website’s content and editorial direction since 2018. With a rich background in fashion design, Iskra’s expertise spans across fashion, interior design, beauty, lifestyle, travel, and culture.
